SEE THAT STORY?

the one down there below...where the GOP Congressman quits in the middle of their national convention because he's outed for paying for gay sex...why is that getting so little press!?! good gravy! he even co-sponsored the anti-gay constitutional amendment!

think about the coverage of the NJ governor that was outed...now compare this! yeah...'liberal media'...

Schwarzenegger's at the RNC

"To those critics who are so pessimistic about our economy, I say: 'Don't be
economic girlie men!'

um...so did i just hear a multi-millionaire call the millions of people who are now unemployed 'woosies'?
Yeah!!...keep up the good worik GOP! gimme more of that!

The Anti- Gay Marriage Amendment's Co-Author is Gay

Well how about that? Ed Schrock, is a 2 term congressman from Virginia running for re-election until today. He'd been touted as the '2nd most conservative' member of the US Congress and he's actually Pat Robertson's Congressman! Most recently he was in the news for pushing the Amendment to ban gay marriage.

Somehow, despite being so busy with that, he managed to find time for a hobby--getting escort services to hook him up with men for sex!!

It seems some gay rights activists posted on a blog that they had some tapes of the congressman then suddenly the blog entry with that info disappeared. Well you'd think that he'd fight these 'dirty lies'...oops! nope. he's resigned effective IMMEDIATELY!

the GOP have a week to find a candidate that will both hate gay people and not want to have sex with them.

Tonight i was watching the GOP convention coverage where some Party members were saying they didn't actually hate gay people...they just didn't want them getting married.

ahem... I see.

Polls Polls Polls

USA Today Reports that Kerry is losing support in some of the battleground states and that Bush has pulled ahead in a few (though only by a point or 2). The Swiftboat garbage has been damaging and 2 things have made it worse: Kerry's handling of it (his campaign's handling of it, actually) and the media echo-chamber that won't let it die. We'll see if the RNC convention pushes it aside.

It is important to note that the polls reviewed consider "Likely Voters". this is a subset of "Registered Voters" which also have a history of voting in recent elections.

When the same Polls consider "Registered Voters" Kerry leads in every state. this means voter turnout (or supression...yeah, i'm lookin' at you GOP) may decide it all if trends continue this way.

WELL...which is it??

from Josh Marshall:

"We have a clear vision on how to win the war on terror and bring peace to the world."

-- George W. Bush
July 30th 2004.

"I don’t think you can win [the war on terror]. But I think you can create conditions so that the — those who use terror as a tool are — less acceptable in parts of the world.”

-- George W. Bush
Aug. 29th, 2004.

Nader and the GOP

Nader refuses to believe that his candidacy helps Bush. If you aren't sure yourself, consider the swing states where Republicans, by the tens of thousand, are signing the petitions to get Nader on the ballot.

Just how far is the GOP going to help Nader? well, Kerry is 1 point ahead in the GOP stronghold of Virginia. There is a good chance that he could carry the state by a slim margin.

Enter the State's Attorney General Jerry Kilgore. Seems ole Jerry is a Bush Cheney campaign chair in Virginia and just last week he overrode the State Board of Elections to allow Nader on the ballot. Despite the conventional wisdom saying that Nader pulls from Democrats, Zogby reports his presence is a wash for both candidates. I don't buy it.

Oh...I've Got Some Polls for Ya... (NOTE this post held over from 8/18 for obvious reasons)

Kerry leads among all age groups except 30-49 year olds, where the two candidates are pretty much tied. Catholics give Kerry a 50%-37% edge – numbers
more similar to Clinton’s leads in 1992 and 1996 than Al Gore’s 51% to 46% margin in 2000. Protestants are for Bush (57% to 33%), especially on the
strength of the President’s 68% to 20% margin among Born Again Protestants.

While this can be interesting to see...don't be fooled. Presidential elections aren't national elections. they are 50 state elections that happen on the same day. to see where this is really going you have to see the poll numbers in the 'toss up' states.

how's it loo there? good and getting better!

Back to Business...

I don't like conventions. the ones i like aren't that exciting to me and the ones i don't like make me worry my candidate won't do well. i always feel this way.

sooooo.... that means i'm tried of sitting on my hands and i appreciate all the kind words from all the readers of this site. i'm coming back to work and this place will be rolling as of now.

thanks.

--Polly & Mr. Mooch.

BUSH REFUSES TO PRAY!! (NOTE this post held over from 8/18 for obvious reasons)

This is an utter shock. seems bush declined a lady's invite to pray publicly for Oregon's 'unchurched' citizens! what happened?!?!

about a week ago i saw a great interview of Maureen Dowd by Tim Russert. Dowd just wrote a book called 'Bushworld' that i wouldn't mind reading (as a book on tape). during the interview he asked her if Bush was pandering to the religious right.

she said no. He IS the Religious Right. he openly discusses the fact that policy, particularly international policy is shaped by both biblical AND literal 'hand of god' guidance. He uses the language of evangelicals in his speechs not just as a nod to those that are listening but rather just an open display of 'what he is'.

I never thought of it this way and you know...i think she is absolutely right. he's not pandering. he IS the religious right.

It's Over.

Thanks to all of my friends and family who have helped me through a difficult time. my father was buried today and i'll miss him.

Eddie Pollan
Marks, MS
Eddie Glen Pollan, 61, died Wednesday, August 18, 2004, from injuries sustained in an automobile accident in Sebastopol, MS. Memorial services are 2 p.m. Saturday at St. Paul's Methodist Church in Clarksdale. Kimbro Funeral Home of Marks is handling arrangements.

It was 2 days and 27 years after Elvis died

My Dad died today. He was driving with my step-mother down the highway near Sebastopol, MS when he reached for something and went off onto the shoulder of the road. Evidently the shoulder had an extremely steep drop and he had to cruise along to find a spot to get back onto the road. At this point, they came upon a fence post that stood along the road. They could not properly avoid it. They knew it was going to be a bad impact. My Step-mother was not wearing a seatbelt so at the point of impact my father threw his body in front of her to absorb the impact. I believe he really loved her and I believe he saved her life. She has a badly hurt shoulder but should be ok. we are waiting to see if surgery will be required.

My father told the people that came to his aid that he didn’t need an ambulance. He then he took a deep breath and was gone. My father was a difficult man for a lot of people. He never showed me the rough side of his temperament the way he would with others. I sometimes thought it was unfair as I saw it happen. A couple of years ago a movie came out called The Royal Tenenbaums. It always choked me up because the father in that movie was like my dad. There is an exchange in the movie that always reminded me of him:

Royal: I've always been considered an asshole for about as long as I can remember. That's just my style. But I'd really feel blue if I didn't think you were going to forgive me.
Henry Sherman: I don't think you're an asshole, Royal. I just think you're kind of a son of a bitch
Royal: Well, I really appreciate that.

Like Royal, I believe he knew his faults and I believe he wanted to amend them for the most part. He was always just himself at the same time. He was difficult (in some way) for most of his loved ones, except for me. Despite this, he was the one that taught me to be a social person. Any ounce of charm or charisma I ever had came from him. You know, despite his faults...most people that knew him just loved the hell out of him.

I did too.

You know, after going to my grandmother’s funeral last year I decided not to ever let a preacher do a eulogy for an immediate family member of mine ever again. I didn’t expect to be coming up with a speech so soon.

SiGNS O THE TiMES

You know...one of the few things that really give me hope kerry might win this thing is the make-up of these recent Bush Rallies. Loyalty oaths...pre screened crowds...etc.

that doesn't sound like a guy heading up a winning movement.

Sadly...

Beloved Charlie Watts of the stones has cancer. My best wishes for a fast recovery!!!

Finding the Spirit

I got this from Big Gray. his site is linked on the side. this is one of the funniest thing's i've ever seen in my life. check out the kid that 'found the spirit'.

R.I.P.

Elvis died 27 years ago today. In Memphis, this is what is called Elvis Week. i went 4 years ago. See, i go to memphis a lot but had never been in graceland. i found it all profoundly moving. i felt completely blindsided by how it effected me. i'm a fan but i'm not a crazy fan.

As I walked around the grounds, it really hit me very hard about the 'meaning of elvis' to so many people...the music, fans, parents, people...some who actually have no idea of the influence.

When i came outside to the last leg of the tour, i came across the graves. you see, his family is buried there. i walked along and by the time i got to his mom i was just sobbing. i didn't fully understand it. i was just overwhelmed.

i never actually saw his grave. i was sobbing too hard to look at it. i just felt like the breath had been knocked out of me.

God bless the King. God save Rock N Roll!

Senator Tom Harkin Quote

"When I hear this coming from Dick Cheney, who was a coward, who would not serve during the Vietnam War, it makes my blood boil," Harkin said. "Those of us who served and those of us who went in the military don't like it when someone like a Dick Cheney comes out and he wants to be tough. Yeah, he'll be tough. He'll be tough with somebody else's blood, somebody else's kids. But not when it was his turn to go."

Blade 2

what a fun movie. i'd see AVP if it's this over the top!

Yahoo! News - Never a hostile question for campaigning Bush

in my america...the president doesn't require loyalty oaths from citizens.

nazis did. yay bush.

Science, politics collide in election year

i believe anyone that was part of the old post on bush and science should read this.

Last November, President Bush gave physicist Richard Garwin a medal for his
"valuable scientific advice on important questions of national security." Just three months later, Garwin signed a statement condemning the Bush administration for misusing, suppressing and distorting scientific advice.

So far more than 4,000 scientists, including 48 Nobel prize winners, have put their names to the declaration...

But this is the first time that a broad spectrum of the scientific community has expressed opposition to a president's overall science policy.

Scientists' feud with the Bush administration, building for almost four years, has intensified this election year. The White House has sacked prominent scientists from presidential advisory committees, science advocacy groups have released lengthy catalogues of alleged scientific abuses by the administration and both sides have traded accusations at meetings and in the pages of research journals.

"People are shocked by what's going on," said Kurt Gottfried, a Cornell University physicist and chairman of the Union of Concerned Scientists, which has been in the vanguard of the campaign against the administration's science policy

Desperate?

People of Color United (now THAT is a novel name for a group created by a white GOP backer) has been running ads on Black radio attacking kerry as "rich...white...and wishy-washy".

who said the GOP didn't look out for black folks!

Dead Reckoning has to be one of the most dramatic names/titles for anything...be it a thing or action.

Notes from the Z3

This may be the most mild August in Mississippi history. we may spend nearly 1/2 the month w/ highs in the 70s and lows in the 50s. i hope this bodes well for snow in the winter!

i put the top down and went down the natchez trace for a drive today and had a few thoughts to share...

The Daily Show with John Stewarthas to be some of the best TV news coverage out there. that's sorta sad...but they really cut to the meat of the top stories of the day. i read that they had the BEST ratings of all the networks during the last convention! jeez.

"Turning the Corner" Bush was really pushing this slogan until Friday when it was ditched. what were they thinking!?! who makes "god...it's been crap for 3 years but here in the last few months it's been getting better...i swear!" as a slogan. seriously. all bias aside...what did they think 'turning the corner' meant?

iran. the US has some real trouble on its hands. iran seems to be dangerously close to having WMD's (for real). one of the Administration's chief sources for iraq WMD info was found to be helping iran. so what do we do? will this Administration go to the world community and ask for sanctions after we called them BS? clearly the danger there is as great or greater than iraq EVER was. so do we get allies to help us? WOULD they help? if so...who? do we invade under the bush model? where the hell do we go from here?

as i have said before...i never minded doing SOMEiNG in iraq...just not the dumbest thing we could dream up. the longterm planning of what this allows us to do in the future has been non-existant.

The Kids are Alright

whoof! those 29 and under favor Kerry 2 to 1. in 2000 it was 50/50.

What Liberal Media??

Atiros provides the info, i supply the Cliffs Notesification. As you may have heard, the GOP have tried to downplay Kerry's war record by repeatedly claiming he only served for 4 months. He volunteered for service, requesting 2 tours of duty and Kerry in fact served in the military for 38 months, starting his training on 8/22/66. no soldier spends their entire time 'in country' as you are trained, etc. when you push for more complicated duty, like Skippering a Swiftboat, there's more training. Kerry served from November to April in actual combat and after his 3rd purple heart was sent stateside where he served for 9 months. (ahem...bush, we know you somehow requested to leave early and got the ok while we were still at war. *ahem*...)

Now the point of this isn't to try and impress you with how much service Kerry had, it is to illustrate the ability of the right/GOP to control the language of what is clearly a positive with Kerry that offers start contrast with Bush's record. please just browse the depth of the 4 Month Myth in our news echo-chamber and thell me the GOP doesn't have talking points that some in the press are using:

AJC, 8/11:
Vietnam communists are advising the Islamic terrorists on howto handle John Kerry: Wound him slightly and often and he'll leave the Middle East in four months.

Cleveland Plain Dealer, Kevin O'Brien, 8/11
Are they truly hoping that Americans will focus so cooperatively on John Kerry’s four months of doing the right thing in Vietnam that they’ll forget that he’s spent the rest of his adult life doing the wrong thing with nearly perfect consistency?

LTTE, St. Petersburg Times, 8/11:
For instance, why did he leave his crew in Vietnam after serving just over four months?

LTTE, LA Times, 08/10:
As far as I can tell the reasons Kerry offers for people to vote for him are that he served in Vietnam for four months on a Swift boat 35 years ago;

Marsha Mercer, Tampa Tribune, 08/09:
Kerry received three Purple Hearts and a Bronze Star during his four months in Vietnam.

Boston Herald, op-Ed, 08/07:
By making his four months of service in Vietnam the centerpiece of his campaign for the presidency, Sen.John Kerry himself invites further scrutiny of that service.

LTTE, Newsday, 08/06:
He avoided hot topics like abortion, gay marriage and gun control and spent most of his time peddling stories of four months in Vietnam 35 years ago.

AJC, the Vent, 08/05:
John Kerry spent four months fighting communism and then spent the next 30 years fighting capitalism.

Linda Chavez, 08/05/2004:
But Mr. Kerry's insistence on making his four-month tour of duty in Vietnam the centerpiece of his campaign could backfire as Americans learn more about what he did in that country and, more important, what he did when he returned home.

David Brooks, 07/31:
For though convention viewers may not be aware of it, Kerry has actually had a career since his four months in Vietnam -- mostly in the Senate.

Cal Thomas (Syndicated), 08/03:
Kerry repeatedly brings up his four-month service in Vietnam.

Adam Nagourney, NYT, 08/01, actually reporting Republican spin:
Entering a four week run-up to the unusually late Republican convention, Mr. Bush's aides said they had laid out a week-by-week in plan in which Mr. Bush would talk about his accomplishments and his second-term agenda. But they said they would also try to blunt what Democrats and Republicans said was a successful four-day Democratic convention focused on Mr. Kerry's veteran credentials by turning attention from what they described as his brief four-month tour in Vietnam to his 20 years in Washington.

LTTE, San Diego Tribune, 8/3
He did spend four months in Vietnam. Since his return, the only consistent factors of his life have been undermining our national defense, and promoting himself.

Washington Post put this in their op-ed:
Mr. Kerry's four-plus months in Vietnam made for an unusually short tour.

We have Fred Barnes on Fox Special Report (8/10)
I wonder what John McCain thinks about Kerry using his four-month record in Vietnam as the centerpiece of his campaign?

Fred Barnes Again (8/9)
Now, if he I telling things that are not true about his four months in Vietnam, then that's important.

AGAIN, same day:
Well, it's also part of the record that he left after four months on the basis of three flesh wounds and not many others did that.

David calling into Talk of the Nation on 08/09:
I read in the Boston Web site that Kerry could have only served four months in
Vietnam.

Uncorrected by the host, Neal Conan.Mara Liasson, falsely corrects a
false statement to preserve the spin, on Fox News Sunday, (08/08)
GIGOT: You know, Kerry's got a lot of other legitimate vulnerabilities, including that asterisk he's put next to his 20 years in the Senate in that speech. I mean, that's what really ought to concern people, because I think Kerry has also overdone his
Vietnam record and tried to say, "Look, because I spent four years in Vietnam, therefore I deserve to be president." I think his Senate record is a much better indicator.
LIASSON: Four months in Vietnam.
GIGOT: Four months, yes.

Novak on Crossfire, 08/07:
I have some question whether 30 years later you should be inspecting the minutiae, the record of John Kerry, which is a very questionable record, how he got his decorations, his very short term of duty, four months of combat, one third of the time.

Tucker Carlson, 08/06, Crossfire:
Kerry has turned his four months in Vietnam into the rationale for an entire presidential campaign.

Republican Chris Horner, on Hannity and Colmes, 08/06:
It is his claims, it is his stake to the presidency on not 19 years in the Senate but four months of Vietnam.

Mara Liasson, 08/06, Talk of the Nation:
Indeed he focuses so much on his four months in Vietnam that critics say he has virtually ignored his 20 years as a United States senator.

Hannity, Hannity & Colmes, 08/05:
You were there with John Kerry for three of the four months that he was there, correct?

Horner, again, John Gibson's show 08/05:
let's talk about the two things that John Kerry thinks qualify him for the White House: the four months in Vietnam and the 19 years in the Senate.

Craig Crawford, from Congressional Quarterly, on CNC's Capital Report:
He wants to run on his four months in Vietnam more than his party or his voting record.

Mary Matalin, on Steffie's show, 08/01:
Four months of honorable service in the height of the Cold War where the national strategies, national security strategies were radically different than what we need today, he's trapped in that thinking.

Novak, 07/31, Capital Gang:
that the tremendous attention for that whole convention, Thursday night, for the whole convention, on his four months in Vietnam is -- is...

Craig Crawford, CBS Political Analyst, the Early Show 07/30:
Well, I think John Kerry hopes to run on his four months in Vietnam as
opposed to his many decades in Congress, especially his own votes on the
war.

Jeff Greenfield(CNN analyst), on Aaron Brown's show, 07/30:
The resume is thin. We heard a lot more about his four months in Vietnam than about 20 years in the Senate.

Haw haw Haw!

The White House says that Porter Goss is the "most qualified man" to run the
CIA. Don't tell Porter Goss.

In an interview Michael Moore's producers filmed but didn't use in "Farenheit 9/11," Goss said that, although he served as a CIA agent in the 1960s, he wouldn't be qualified for a job as an agent today.

Moore released the transcript of the March 3 interview Wednesday. According to a Reuters report, Goss told Moore's producers: "I couldn't get a job with CIA today. I am not qualified."

Do I have an objection about Porter Goss? Yeah. it's because when asked about the White House leaking the names of field agents...outing them as it were, he said it wasn't a big deal and not worth investigating. jesus...even Bush 41 said it was treasonous!

600-Pound Woman Dies After Being Surgically Removed From Couch:

How terrible!

"STUART, Fla. -- A dramatic rescue ended tragically in Stuart, Florida, a rescue so difficult firefighters say they have never seen anything like it.

It happened late Tuesday night and early Wednesday morning at the home of a 600-pound woman who was having trouble breathing. Rescuers went in not knowing how difficult it would be to get her out. 40-year-old Gail Grinds was literally stuck to her couch and had to be removed surgically at the hospital.

Authorities estimate she had been on the couch anywhere from two to five years...
An ambulance was too small, so they brought in a trailer to get her out. While rescue crews came up with a back-door rescue plan, detectives secured what had become a crime scene, questioning family members about how it got so bad.

Using planks, they loaded the woman on to the trailer, still attached to the couch. Removing her would be too painful, since her body is grafted to the fabric. After years of staying put, her skin has literally become one with the sofa and it must be surgically removed.

Detectives are investigating whether they have a case of neglect, or if it is simply a very sad story.

Grinds was taken to the Martin Memorial hospital where doctors removed her from the couch, but she died in spite of all the attempts to save her life."

Lynyrd Skynyrd - The Ballad Of Curtis Lowe

This is one of my favorite songs. mostly because it mirrors a lot of things i grew up with. its about the singer as a kid. he'd get up early to collect soda bottles to turn in for money. he'd give that money to Curtis Lowe who'd sit on the sidewalk getting drunk with that money and playing the blues with that whiskey money.

"the people would say he was useless...but them people all were fools...cause Curtis Lowe was the finest picker ever to play the blues."

all the white people this guy knew would talk about how Curtis was useless and this little white kid could see that they didn't know what the hell they were talking about. he saw the value of this person whom that world wouldn't give the time of day. the kid would risk a whippin' just to hear this fella play music and entertain.

I can't tell you how strong this song hits me when i hear it in a bar. growing up around the racism and the BS that i knew in my surroundings and family as a kid. But as a kid, i knew it was BS and i saw the value in those around me. those that were 'worthless'. i knew better and that's about the proudest thing i recall when i think about being a kid. i knew better even if the adults around me didn't. i knew there were these people that were called 'trash' but i never saw it that way. they were funny and talented and good hearted. i learned as much from those folks as i did from my schooling. i grew up poor around even poorer folks that taught me my own value. To this day i tell people i'm fron Clarksdale, MS as if i were saying i was born with a silver spoon in my mouth. it makes me feel rich. it taought me an awful lot at an awfully young age.

"Cause Curtis Lowe was the finest picker to ever to play the blues"...

Harper's Weekly Review

Always a great read. new editions out on tuesdays, compiled by Roger D. Hodge. I'll cherrypick some highlights for ya (my comments in the parentheses):

WEEKLY REVIEW

*George W. Bush acknowledged that the war on terror has been "misnamed"; he said that it ought to be called "the struggle against ideological extremists who do not believe in free societies who happen to use terror as a weapon to try to shake the conscience of the free world." (catchy!)

*Israeli officials were studying whether to use marijuana to treat soldiers suffering the effects of post-traumatic stress disorder from keeping the Palestinians down. (i know how to fix it! quit killing people!).

*Crude oil prices reached a record high of $44.41, and the Dow Jones Industrial Average dropped to a new low for 2004.

*Thai police put a stop to orangutan boxing matches at Safari World, a zoo near Bangkok. (Mr. Mooch was in training. now its all wasted)

*The Bureau of LaborStatistics reported that the layoff rate during the first three years of the Bush Administration was 8.7 percent (11.4 million people lost their jobs), the worst layoff rate since the early 1980s.

*Two Nigerian policemen were shot and two were stabbed in a battle with wife swappers.

*It was the 40th anniversary of the Gulf of Tonkin resolution, which gave President Lyndon Johnson the authority to escalate the war in Vietnam; historians noted its similarity to the October 2002 congressional resolution authorizing the invasion of Iraq, which was also based on falsehoods. (well whatayaknow!)

*Scientists said that alcohol makes your brain work better. (FINALLY
some redemption!)

*Tom Ridge, the secretary of Homeland Security, "categorically" denied that the recent terror alerts, which were based on three-and four-year-old intelligence, were politically motivated.

*Britain banned toothy smiles from passport photos.

*Moktada al-Sadr defied the new Iraqi government and said he would continue to battle American forces: "the Mahdi Army and I will keep resisting. I will stay in holy Najaf and will never leave. I will stay here until my last drop of blood." (again i'm the same age as this guy...we went to different High Schools)

*Several Nigerian sorcerers were arrested after skulls, body parts, and 50 corpses were found in shrines belonging to a cult called Alusi Okija; the chief priest of the cult was not arrested, however, because he's an old man and police didn't want him to die in custody. (Our local sorcerers are much nicer)

*The United States announced that it will insist that the Fissile Material Cutoff Treaty, which would ban countries from making enriched uranium and plutonium for nuclear bombs, be stripped of any mechanism for enforcement, such as inspections. This position, which would render the treaty useless, apparently was reached because the Bush Administration does not wish to submit to inspections. "My most solemn duty as president," said Bush, "is to protect our country." (Way to look out for us, you moron!)

*Russian researchers from the Voronezh State Technological Academy said they had perfected a method for using cow blood as a high-protein dairy replacement in foods such as yogurt. (Um, thank god for the "Gross Studies" department at ole Voronezh U!")

*Dutch lawmakers called for a ban on unsolicited toe licking. (...and not a day too soon!)

Swift Boat Smear

Click above if you want the REAL info on the vets trying to smear John Kerry's war record. of course, as you already know, all involved either didn't actually serve with Kerry or have recanted their statements as lies. this article digs a little deeper.

On This Day

"The Son of Sam" was arrested on this day, 27 years ago.

Banning Bad News in Iraq

The New Iraqi government has shown its dedication to freedom by banning Al Jazeera from operating for one month. lord knows freedom and reporting the news don't mix!

*ahem*

It creeps me out...

I'm still a pretty young guy, but it kinda freaks me out that this guy is my age. damn nut.

A Hard Life

As you already know...Rick James died this week at 56. let me just tell you...your body has been through a lot if at 56 your cause of death is 'natural causes'!

as i recall...that was a cause of death given when Jerry Garcia died.

Churches See an Election Role and Spread the Word on Bush

You have to read this. it outlines just how much the GOP is doing this election year to get out the Conservative vote. the Religious Right has never been Courted any more than this election. they are working for a seamless line between the politics to the sermon to the polls. i've heard some democrats dismayed about this (understood...they should be) and SHOCkED! No one should be shocked...especially the Dems who do the same thing in a different way with black churches. the real concern is how to counter this. karl rove believes bush missed 4Million of these voters last go-'round. Ths sort of work by itself isn't the concern...as much as the extent to which it is happening in SWiNG STATES. Padding states Bush will already win isn't a risk. what we has to be known is to what extent these folks inhabit swing states.

a clip below:

ST. LOUIS, Aug. 8 - Susanne Jacobsmeyer, a member of the West County Assembly of God in a St. Louis suburb, voted for George W. Bush four years ago, but mostly out of loyalty as a Republican and not with much passion.

This year, Ms. Jacobsmeyer is a "team leader" in the Bush campaign's effort to turn out conservative Christian voters. "This year I am voting for him as a man of faith," she said over breakfast after an early morning service. "He has proven that he will do what is right, and he will look to God first."

Jan Klarich, her friend and another team leader, agreed. "Don't you feel it is a spiritual battle?" she asked to nods around the table.

The Bush campaign is seeking to rally conservative churches and their members to help turn out sympathetic voters this fall, and West County Assembly of God, a 600-member evangelical congregation in a Republican district of a pivotal swing state, is
on the front lines of the effort.

Ray

Saw the AWESOME trailer for this movie last nite. can't wait. watch the trailer!

Neat Chart.

You may have heard rumors that when ever Bush's ratings are dipping or when he needs a boost, we start getting terror warnings. well here's a handy dandy little chart that lays it all out for ya!

"I Knew it was Wrong"

"John Kerry's former commanding officer now retracts a statement he signed
onto at the prodding of the anti-Kerry Swift Boat Veterans that said Kerry
didn't deserve the Silver Star. It was a 'terrible mistake,' and he felt 'time
pressure' from those involved in the book, the officer says."

From the
Globe: "A key figure in the anti-Kerry campaign, Kerry's former commanding
officer, backed off one of the key contentions. Lieutenant Commander George
Elliott said in an interview that he had made a ''terrible mistake' in signing
an affidavit that suggests Kerry did not deserve the Silver Star -- one of the
main allegations in the book. The affidavit was given to The Boston Globe by the
anti-Kerry group to justify assertions in their ad and book."

"Elliott
is quoted as saying that Kerry ''lied about what occurred in Vietnam . . . for
example, in connection with his Silver Star, I was never informed that he had
simply shot a wounded, fleeing Viet Cong in the back.'"

show's how sincere the 'don't question our soldiers' crowd is! of course i don't question the soldiers, i question our leadership.

OH, this is GREAT!

So bush was in Iowa on Tuesday and he got the crowd worked up. he told them how his policies helped them, stating, "Because we acted, Iowa's unemployment rate now is 4.3 percent."

how true it is...you know, because 4 years ago, Iowa's unemployment rate was 2.4 percent!

Bush...couldn't have done it without ya!

Marshall Ramsey - The Great

one more. man i hate Haley Barbour. 65,000 poor and elderly kicked off of Medicaid.

Marshall Ramsey - The Great

haw haw haw! new englanders.

Marshall Ramsey - The Great!

This is a good one!

Coveted

A childhood relic.

TRULY BAD

Here are accounts of what has been going on with our prisoners at Guantanamo Bay. you likely won't hear about this, as we are in the middle of trying the 'bad apples' from Abu Ghraib. the problem is the problems in cuba AND the problems in Abu Ghraib came under the same leadership--General Geoffrey Miller. his connection seems to be ignored to stick with the 'a few bad apples' view of how prison abuses happened...of course, this ignores the Army's own report that the problem was pervasive and systemic.

McCain condemns anti-Kerry ads, calls on White House to follow suit:

"Republican Sen. John McCain, a former prisoner of war in Vietnam,
called an ad criticizing John Kerry's military service 'dishonest and
dishonorable' and urged the White House on Thursday to condemn it as
well.

"I deplore this kind of politics. I think the ad is dishonest and
dishonorable. As it is, none of these individuals served on the boat (Kerry)
commanded. Many of his crew have testified to his courage under fire. I think
John Kerry served honorably in Vietnam. I think George Bush served honorably in
the Texas Air National Guard during the Vietnam War."

Yow! well, don't hold your breath Johnny! Nobody at BushCo. is stepping in front of this smear machine!

War Record

Well, this looks to be big. either the horrible truth or perhaps the worst campaign smear campaign in history. the news seems to point to the ladder. I have to wonder, what's the effect? The TV ads feature vets talking about Kerry's dishonorable service, but they were not actually serving on the swift boat with the democrat. it also seems that this book was put together by a Nixon smear man that was attacking Kerry back in the 70s!

about the ad, John McCain had this to say:

Republican Sen. John McCain, a former prisoner of war in Vietnam, called an
ad criticizing John Kerry's military service 'dishonest and dishonorable' and
urged the White House on Thursday to condemn it as well.

'It was the same kind of deal that was pulled on me,' McCain said in an interview with The Associated Press, referring to his bitter Republican primary fight with
President Bush….

Asked if the White House knew about the ad or helped find financing for
it, McCain said, 'I hope not, but I don't know. But I think the Bush campaign
should specifically condemn the ad.'

The New York Times Has the Boss

from the article by Bruce Springsteen:

Like many others, in the aftermath of 9/11, I felt the country's unity. I don't
remember anything quite like it. I supported the decision to enter Afghanistan
and I hoped that the seriousness of the times would bring forth strength,
humility and wisdom in our leaders. Instead, we dived headlong into an
unnecessary war in Iraq, offering up the lives of our young men and women under
circumstances that are now discredited. We ran record deficits, while
simultaneously cutting and squeezing services like afterschool programs. We
granted tax cuts to the richest 1 percent (corporate bigwigs, well-to-do guitar
players), increasing the division of wealth that threatens to destroy our social
contract with one another and render mute the promise of "one nation
indivisible."

It is through the truthful exercising of the best of human
qualities - respect for others, honesty about ourselves, faith in our ideals -
that we come to life in God's eyes. It is how our soul, as a nation and as
individuals, is revealed. Our American government has strayed too far from
American values. It is time to move forward. The country we carry in our hearts
is waiting

I Can’t Sleep

From time to time, over the last 10 years, I’ve had insomnia. Tonite is one of those nites. I went to bed hours ago and I was exhausted. I’m worse off now, but I can’t sleep. I toss and turn, my eyes water because they don’t want to be open. i still can't sleep.

earlier i heard a loud noise but attributed it to the cat. still it sounded nothing like a cat, more like a person. I got a cold feeling and double checked the locks. shortly thereafter i laid in bed. an alarm was going off non-stop. i thought a car, maybe? next thing i know, our room is lit with flashing light. security is at the house behind mine. something is up. and now i am too. for good.

I had a bad feeling something was going to happen tonite. it just may have...now i have the creeps.

Not Playing Politics

After being questioned about how the terror warnings seemed politically motivated to help Bush...Tom Ridge said:

'We don't do politics in the Department of Homeland Security.'

'cept he forgot about this little tidbit he dropped in the press conference...in case anyone missed it:

(The new terror alert was) 'the result of the president's leadership in the war against terror.'

no politics at all...huh?

Kerry isn't the Senate's most liberal. And it's easy to explain that weird vote

Above is a Link from JasN.

you know, i watch the daily show every day and this came up. a GOP congressman was on and it was friendly, etc. he was part of the Bush 'rapid response team' and he started in on this #1 and #4 most liberal thing. i guess they are used to being able to say whatever they want with no one asking a follow up question.

John Stewart asks "who makes these numbers up?" after a lot of vague, BS answers ('some people'), Stewart finally says: "i'll let you know, it's the National Journal." then he says "i guess this is a view over their careers, right?" the congressman says yes, to which Stewart says "well, actually it's not. its a specific piece of time made to create that result".

The congressman said he was on the rapid response team to 'get the truth out' and Stewart agreed that was needed. the problem is, this wasn't the truth and it was wrong. Stewart was amazingly polite and yet unwilling to allow this kind of crap to be said, unquestioned. Our other news organizations could learn something from this. i'm not just saying go after the GOP. go after the TRUTH! news reporting does not mean sit there like a tape recorder so that our government officials and their operators can simply say what the like to us without an inquiry about the quality of those statements.

The Axis of Cash-flow?

Pursuant to the authority vested in me by the Constitution and the laws of the United States, including section 503(a) of the Foreign Assistance Act of 1961, as amended, and section 3(a)(1) of the Arms Export Control Act, as amended, I hereby find that the furnishing of defense articles and services to Iraq will strengthen the security of the United States and promote world peace.
You are authorized and directed to report this finding to the Congress and to publish it in the Federal Register.
GEORGE W. BUSH

So is this how we treat an 'evil' country that has been working to build nukes, been caught spying on us in recent months and supporting terrorism. is it some kind of republican reflex to constantly try to arm these jerks? if so...stop!

please.

A Gorjus Point

Gorj. made a pretty strong point to me the other day. to all of you who say Kerry won't protect us...why don't you name me ALL the People trying to be Pres and VP who not only say they are strong on our defense, but actually volunteered and then literally, physically KILLED enemies of the state? think of that next time someone tries to call Kerry or Dems 'wimpy'

OH! Sorry Bush, "Killing" a Coors doesn't count.

Orange Alert

all day today we heard about the heightened terror alert.

Kerry was briefed and it was made to seem credible. Dean said it looked suspicious since this happens to be the 'trump card' bush plays when he needs a boost. dems supposedly backed away from this statement in light of how 'real' this thing today is. well, now we get this on drudge:

Much of the information that led authorities to raise the terror alert at
several large financial institutions in the NY and D.C. areas was 3 or 4 years
old... NYT Tuesday Page One Splash To Claim: Intelligence and law enforcement
officials 'had not yet found concrete evidence that a terror plot or preparatory
surveillance operations were still under way'... WASH POST Page One: Alerts
Stemmed from Pre-9/11 Acts /// 'There is nothing right now that we're hearing
that is new,' said one senior law enforcement official who was briefed on the
alert. 'Why did we go to this level?... I still don't know that'... POST: 'Most
of the information was compiled prior to the Sept. 11 attacks and that there are
serious doubts about the age of other, undated files'...

so what was it? did it come from this NEW arrest or was it substantially culled from old information kept in check until it was 'needed'? likely the new arrest did some bolstering of the OLD info. so how much was new? you can bet your rear you won't ever know. this sort of manipulation of civil defense for political purposes is beyond the pale and damn well dangerous.

Quote of the (last) week:

This was a simple quote. very understated in its meaning, but when we heard it here in my living room, WE could feel the bite. this may be one of the harshest comments made by Kerry against Bush:

"What if we had a President that Believed in Science?"

Bush Planning August Attack Against Kerry

Well, Bush plans to start back on the attack against Kerry this month. i say ROCK ON! in an unprecidented 90 days of attacks on Kerry this spring Bush saw his own numbers dip as low as he had ever seen in his career. Here's looking for more of the same!

keep it up!

In Case Your Didn't Know...

Taliban forces have been attacking our troops in Afganistan. thank god we are now drawing them to Iraq, were are troops are!

Bush Hates Americans!

In an amazing attempt to protect companies that maim and kill Americans, Bush has some new ideas for our courts. In a civil suit in Philadelphia the Bush Administration has stepped in to protect a drug company.

In a recent ruling, a federal appeals panel in Philadelphia, after seeking the
administration's views, threw out a lawsuit filed by the widow of a man whose
heart pump failed. Whatever the legal merits of this close two-to-one decision,
which turned on the degree to which the F.D.A. can pre-empt state laws and court
decisions, most fair-minded Americans would probably think that the widow got a
bum deal. The facts of the case as alleged in court documents suggest that the
heart pump, though approved by the agency, was designed poorly.

The administration argues that allowing consumers to sue the manufacturers would undermine federal regulation of drugs and devices by encouraging lay judges and juries to second-guess the experts at the F.D.A. The result could be a hodgepodge of conflicting judgments around the country as to the safety of a product and the need to change warning labels. Skittish manufacturers might then remove good products from the market or issue scary warnings that would discourage their use.

Now think about this. EVERY dangerous drug/product on the market that has killed or injured someone was approved by the FDA. Every drug company that witheld information that their drug was harmful...well, THEY were FDA approved! this sort of policy would close off the courts from anyone harmed by a drug that the manufacturers knew was a danger. This is nothing less than a wholesale dismissal of our protections in a court of law.

Welcome to election year pander-politics, Bush Style. you think he's looking out for you?

the argument they've put forth is that all drugs approved by the FDA should be immune from lawsuits. the idea is that the lawsuit interferes with the

Brit Hume of FOXNews was MOVED by John Edward's Speech

This great little bite ran in Salon last week. Read:

Appreciation for political oratory comes in all forms. During the speeches by Al Sharpton and John Edwards on Wednesday, for instance, the delegates' emotional responses to their words were palpable. As I left the Fleet Center there was a unanimity and upbeat giddiness in the air. Delegates seemed to have been genuinely moved by the speeches and to feel that the party had had a very good night.

As I exited the compound at about 11:15 p.m. I found myself walking next to a trio of familiar faces who had emerged from one of the side doors: Brit Hume, Fred Barnes and Mort Kondracke -- Fox News all-stars all. To my amusement, Kondracke was carrying a Kerry-Edwards sign, and talking about carrying it on the plane back to Washington as a souvenir.

The chance encounter brought me back to four years ago at the Los Angeles Democratic convention, when I had run into Sean Hannity immediately after Al Gore's acceptance speech and he had been cock-a-hoop at what he perceived as a massive mistake by the V.P. "Gore blew it -- he just won over the entire McGovern vote!" So I was aware that the off-camera reactions of conservative commentators can provide a fascinating barometer reading. A misfired Democratic speech is no
cause for concern to them. A speech that they think might have connected with Middle America is much more troubling.

So I was fascinated to see that Hume and Barnes in particular looked so glum. Did they perceive that Edwards may have "made the case" to swing voters?

Saying hello and reintroducing myself (I'd met all three men during the 2000 conventions), I fell into step with them as they walked through the light drizzle toward their waiting limos. "Why the long face, Brit?" I asked. He didn't pause a beat. "I've never experienced a more emotional political night in my life," he said in deadpan style. "Edwards' speech was the most emotional thing I've ever heard in my life. When I heard John Edwards talking about mothers sitting at their kitchen tables I was moved. My heart was moved ... my bowels were moved."

I was somewhat flummoxed by this response, and it was unusual enough that I instantly hit the mental "save" button. I'm not accustomed to hearing about the bowel movements of TV personalities, so the precise wording burned itself into my mind (and five minutes later into my notebook).

"What about you, Fred?" I queried. Hume answered for the moody-looking Barnes. "Al Sharpton's speech got him," said Hume, adding that when people examined the transcript of Edwards' speech they would find that it was lightweight.

At this point Hume changed the topic and asked me (as an Englishman) to clarify a point of English grammar that was apparently on his mind. He asked me if it was correct that the royal park in London was known as "St. James's Park" (with a possessive "s" at the end), as distinct from "The Court of St. James" (singular), part of the official title of the American ambassador to Great Britain.

Intrigued by his interest, I was happy to confirm his understanding. But why this curiosity? Perhaps there's an ambassadorship in his future? Brit Hume as ambassador to the Court of St. James -- it was an idea that moved me. My heart was moved ...

-- Martin Lewis